MISSION AND VISION

CREAD is an education, equity, diversity and inclusion consulting, coaching and curriculum development firm. We offer professional development and technical assistance to schools, districts, parent associations and community based organizations.

Mission: to support teachers, educators and community members in ensuring the positive racial identity development through education of young people of the African Diaspora.

Vision: To strengthen our children and community with PRIDE based on the Sankofa principle.

STORY OF CREAD

I was visiting the first HS I’ve ever taught in. It was a sweet walk down memory lane, though the school had changed, and not for the better. I walked into the guidance suite, to talk with one of the elders in the building. In his office was a former colleague Cathleen Antoine and this legendary elder.

The three of us began to talk about what we believed would save the school and what we needed to do to support teachers. We talked for hours, we pontificated on who was at fault for the failure of our beloved school and who was responsible for the support and development of Black teachers who were woke but unsupported. We decided to stop speaking about it and be about it. We then organized a meet up for “Culturally Responsive Educators of the African Diaspora.”

We were clear that this was going to be a meeting of educators who considered themselves being “of the diaspora” and wanting to build community with other educators of the diaspora. From that meeting CREAD was spawned. We eventually decided we wanted to create an online following while providing teachers with resources and ideas to support them as they teach in this era of #blacklivesmatter and the consciousness rising of young people of the diaspora.

As Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes sang in 1975;

Wake up all the teacher time to teach a new wayMaybe then they’ll listen to whatcha have to say‘Cause they’re the ones who’s coming up and the world is in their handsWhen you teach the children teach em the very best you can

We’re heeding the call. Our desire is to help support teachers as we usher in this new way of teaching, a way of teaching that is built on the foundation of positive racial identity development through education (PRIDE) built on the West African principle of Sankofa for those of the African Diaspora.

WANT TO CONTRIBUTE?

Are you a parent, educator or freedom fighter, someone who cares about the education of our children? Do you have ideas about education for liberation that keep swirling around your mind that you just gotta share. Share it with us. Send an email to Khalilah@creadnyc.com and let’s chat.